Fares Fares (; born 29 April 1973) is a Swedish-Lebanese actor of Assyrian descent.

Early life

Fares was born in

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

. His younger brother is director

Josef Fares Josef Fares (born 19 September 1977) is a Swedish-Lebanese film director and video game designer of Assyrian descent. His brother is the actor Fares Fares, who has appeared in many of his films. He is the founder of Hazelight Studios. Biograph ...

, and he has four sisters. In 1987, when Fares was 14 years old, his family moved to Sweden, residing in

Örebro Örebro ( , ) is the sixth-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Örebro Municipality, and capital of the Örebro County. It is situated by the Närke Plain, near the lake Hjälmaren, a few kilometers inland along the small river Svartån, and ...

. They moved to escape the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...

and chose Sweden because they had relatives who had already lived there. Fares says he learned Swedish within three months of living in Sweden. From the age of 15, Fares acted in a local theater group in Örebro. When he was 19, he attended drama school in Mölnlycke near Gothenburg, Sweden. He spent six years working in the Theatre Tamauer.

Career

Film

Fares has played major parts in his brother, director

' films, including his debut acting performance in 2000's '' Jalla! Jalla!'' and 2003's '' Kopps.'' He starred in '' Bang Bang Orangutang'' (2005) and '' Kill Your Darlings'' (2006). In 2010, Fares starred in the Swedish crime thriller '' Easy Money'' with Joel Kinnaman. The film was critically acclaimed and was picked up for American distribution by

Harvey Weinstein Harvey Weinstein (; born March 19, 1952) is an American former film producer and convicted sex offender. He and his brother, Bob Weinstein, co-founded the entertainment company Miramax, which produced several successful independent films includ ...

. In 2012, Fares made his Hollywood debut in the Denzel Washington movie ''

Safe House A safe house (also spelled safehouse) is, in a generic sense, a secret place for sanctuary or suitable to hide people from the law, hostile actors or actions, or from retribution, threats or perceived danger. It may also be a metaphor. Histori ...

.'' He played CIA officer Hakim in ''

Zero Dark Thirty ''Zero Dark Thirty'' is a 2012 American thriller film directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal. The film dramatizes the nearly decade-long international manhunt for Osama bin Laden, leader of terrorist network Al-Qaeda, after the ...

.'' Fares had a role in '' Child 44'' (2014) with Tom Hardy and

Gary Oldman Gary Leonard Oldman (born 21 March 1958) is an English actor and filmmaker. Known for his versatility and intense acting style, he has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and three British Academy ...

. Fares played Senator Vaspar in the '' Star Wars'' franchise movie '' Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'' (2016). For 2013's ''Kvinden i buret'' (English title: ''The Keeper of Lost Causes''), which was set in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

, Fares learned to speak Danish. ''Keeper of Lost Causes'' is based on a novel by

Jussi Adler-Olsen Carl Valdemar Jussi Henry Adler-Olsen (born 2 August 1950) is a Danish crime fiction writer, a publisher, editor, and entrepreneur, best known for his '' Department Q'' series. He made his debut as a nonfiction writer in 1984, and as a fiction ...

, the first of four features based on his Department Q novels. Fares and Nikolaj Lie Kaas will appear in all four films. ''Keeper of Lost Causes'' was Denmark's top film of 2013. ''Fasandræberne'' (English title: ''The Absent One'') is the second film in the series. It also broke Danish film grosses, setting new records. The third film in the series, ''A Conspiracy of Faith (Flaskepost fra P),'' premiered in Denmark in March 2016 and in the United States in June.

Television

In 2014, Fares portrayed Fauzi Nadal in the TV show ''

Tyrant A tyrant (), in the modern English usage of the word, is an absolute ruler who is unrestrained by law, or one who has usurped a legitimate ruler's sovereignty. Often portrayed as cruel, tyrants may defend their positions by resorting to re ...

'' on the

FX Network FX is an American pay television channel owned by FX Networks, LLC, a subsidiary of the Disney General Entertainment Content unit of The Walt Disney Company. It is based at the Fox Studios lot in Century City, California. FX originally launch ...

. ''Tyrant'' was renewed for a second season, which began airing in the summer of 2015, and a third season in summer 2016. In 2018-2019 Fares appeared in the two HBO blockbuster series ''

Westworld ''Westworld'' is an American science fiction-thriller media franchise that began with the 1973 film ''Westworld'', written and directed by Michael Crichton. The film depicts a technologically advanced Wild-West-themed amusement park populate ...

'' and '' Chernobyl''. In 2021, he portrayed the Forsaken Ishamael in ''

The Wheel of Time ''The Wheel of Time'' is a series of high fantasy novels by American author Robert Jordan, with Brandon Sanderson as a co-author for the final three novels. Originally planned as a six-book series, ''The Wheel of Time'' spans 14 volumes, in ad ...

''.

Theater

* 1996: Samuel Beckett's ''I väntan på Godot (Waiting for Godot)'' at Teater Tamauer, Sweden * 2000: ''Dom'', directed by Jasenko Selimovic, with Torkel Petersson, at the Gothenburg City Theatre (Göteborgs Stadsteater), Gothenburg, Sweden * 2000: ''Natten före skogarna'' at Teater Tamauer, Sweden * 2001: ''Tillbaka till öknen'' at the Royal Dramatic Theatre, Stockholm, Sweden * 2002: ''Köket'' at the Gothenburg City Theatre, Gothenburg, Sweden * 2003: ''Brott, hemtjänst, straffpengar, pensionärsmord'' at Backstage, Sweden * 2003: ''Den arabiska natten'' at Backstage, Sweden

Other work

* Fares appears in two music videos for

Lykke Li Li Lykke Timotej Zachrisson (born 18 March 1986), known as Lykke Li (), is a Swedish singer. Her music often blends elements of indie pop, dream pop and Electronic music, electronic. Her debut studio album, ''Youth Novels'', was released in 2008 ...

; 2011 single, "

I Follow Rivers "I Follow Rivers" is a song by Swedish recording artist Lykke Li from her second studio album, '' Wounded Rhymes'' (2011). Produced by Björn Yttling of Peter Bjorn and John, it was released on 21January 2011 as the album's second single. The tr ...

", directed by Tarik Saleh and 2014 album teaser, "I Never Learn" * Appeared in Daniel Lemma's music video "If I Used To Love You" with Torkel Pettterson * 2011: TV commercial for

Tanqueray Tanqueray is an English brand of gin produced by Diageo plc. It originated in London. In 2016 it displaced Beefeater as the number one global seller. While it does not command a sizable market share in its native market, its largest market i ...

"Tonight We Tanqueray" - Actor - the bartender * 2012: Short film, sponsored by Maiyet called
Sleepwalking In the Rift
'' directed by

Cary Fukunaga Cary Joji Fukunaga (born July 10, 1977) is an American filmmaker. He first gained recognition for writing and directing the 2009 film '' Sin nombre'' and the 2011 adaptation of ''Jane Eyre''. He was the first director of partial East Asian des ...

* 2018: Plays Leo in the video game '' A Way Out'' * 2021: Did additional voices for ''It Takes Two''.

Personal life

Fares says he spends his time in Stockholm and

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fares, Fares 1973 births Living people Assyrian emigrants to Sweden Swedish male film actors Swedish people of Assyrian/Syriac descent Lebanese emigrants to Sweden 20th-century Swedish male actors 21st-century Swedish male actors Swedish male television actors Male actors from Beirut Assyrian actors Best Actor Guldbagge Award winners